AVNET INC (AVT) FY 2023 MD&A

Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

For a description of the Company’s critical accounting policies and an understanding of Avnet and the significant factors that influenced the Company’s performance during the past three fiscal years, the following discussion should be read in conjunction with the description of the business appearing in Item 1 of this Report and the consolidated financial statements, including the related notes and schedule, and other information appearing in Item 8 of this Report. The Company operates on a “52/53 week” fiscal year. Fiscal 2023 and fiscal 2022 contain 52 weeks compared to 53 weeks in fiscal 2021.

The discussion of the Company’s results of operations includes references to the impact of foreign currency translation. When the U.S. Dollar strengthens and the stronger exchange rates are used to translate the results of operations of Avnet’s subsidiaries denominated in foreign currencies, the result is a decrease in U.S. Dollars of reported results. Conversely, when the U.S. Dollar weakens, the weaker exchange rates result in an increase in U.S. Dollars of reported results. In the discussion that follows, results excluding this impact, primarily for subsidiaries in EMEA and Asia, are referred to as “constant currency.”

In addition to disclosing financial results that are determined in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the U.S. (“GAAP”), the Company also discloses certain non-GAAP financial information, including:

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The reconciliation of operating income to adjusted operating income is presented in the following table:

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Management believes that providing this additional information is useful to financial statement users to better assess and understand operating performance, especially when comparing results with prior periods or forecasting performance for future periods, primarily because management typically monitors the business both including and excluding these adjustments to GAAP results. Management also uses these non-GAAP measures to establish operational goals and, in many cases, for measuring performance for compensation purposes. However, any analysis of results on a non-GAAP basis should be used as a complement to, and in conjunction with, results presented in accordance with GAAP.

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Results of Operations

Executive Summary

Sales for fiscal 2023 were $26.54 billion, an increase of 9.2% from fiscal 2022 sales of $24.31 billion. Excluding the impact of changes in foreign currency, sales increased 13.4% as compared to sales in the prior year. This increase in sales was predominately driven by sales growth in both operating groups across all regions driven by strong global demand and to a lesser extent pricing for electronic components.

Gross profit increased $216.8 million or 7.3% from fiscal 2022 gross profit due primarily to increases in sales. Gross profit margin of 12.0% decreased 21 basis points compared to 12.2% in fiscal 2022. This decrease is primarily driven by the unwinding of certain pricing premiums in the Farnell business.

Operating income of $1.19 billion was $247.8 million or 26.4% higher than fiscal 2022. Operating income margin was 4.5% in fiscal 2023, as compared to 3.9% in fiscal 2022. The increase in operating income margin is primarily the result of increases in sales and the operating leverage created by the additional gross profit dollars without any meaningful increase in selling, general and administrative expenses. Adjusted operating income margin was 4.6% in fiscal 2023 as compared to 4.1% in fiscal 2022, an increase of 55 basis points. This increase in adjusted operating income margin is primarily due to increases in sales and the operating leverage created by the additional gross profit dollars.

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Sales

Three-Year Analysis of Sales: By Operating Group and Geography

The table below provides a year-over-year summary of sales for the Company and its operating groups.

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The table below provides reported and organic sales growth rates for fiscal 2023 as compared to fiscal 2022 by geographic region and operating group.

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Avnet’s sales for fiscal 2023 were $26.54 billion, an increase of $2.23 billion, or 9.2%, from fiscal 2022 sales of $24.31 billion. Sales in constant currency increased 13.4% year over year, reflecting sales growth in both operating groups across all regions driven by strong global demand and to a lesser extent pricing for electronic components.

EC sales in fiscal 2023 were $24.80 billion, representing a 10.2% increase over fiscal 2022 sales of $22.50 billion. EC sales increased 14.4% year over year in constant currency. The increase in EC sales is primarily due to double-digit growth in the Americas and EMEA regions driven primarily by strong demand in the industrial, transportation, and aerospace and defense sectors.

Farnell sales in fiscal 2023 were $1.73 billion, a decrease of $73.0 million or 4.0%, from fiscal 2022 sales of $1.81 billion. The year-over-year decrease in sales was primarily a result of foreign currency translation from a strengthening U.S. Dollar. Farnell sales in constant currency increased 0.9% year over year as sales growth in the Americas was offset by sales declines in the EMEA and Asia regions.

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Gross Profit

Gross profit in fiscal 2023 was $3.18 billion, an increase of $216.8 million, or 7.3%, from fiscal 2022 gross profit of $2.97 billion. Gross profit margin decreased to 12.0% in fiscal 2023 or 21 basis points from fiscal 2022 gross profit margin of 12.2%. EC gross profit margin increased year over year primarily due to a higher percentage of sales coming from the higher-margin western regions. Sales in the higher margin western regions represented approximately 60% of sales in fiscal 2023 as compared to 56% during fiscal 2022. Farnell gross profit margin decreased year over year primarily driven by the unwinding of certain component pricing premiums during fiscal 2023 and from unfavorable sales mix of lower margin products.

Selling, General and Administrative Expenses

Selling, general and administrative expenses (“SG&A expenses”) in fiscal 2023 were $1.97 billion, a decrease of $27.5 million, or 1.4%, from fiscal 2022. The year-over-year decrease in SG&A expenses was primarily a result of foreign currency translation from a strengthening U.S. Dollar.

Metrics that management monitors with respect to its operating expenses are SG&A expenses as a percentage of sales and as a percentage of gross profit. In fiscal 2023, SG&A expenses as a percentage of sales were 7.4% and as a percentage of gross profit were 61.8%, as compared with 8.2% and 67.3%, respectively, in fiscal 2022. The decreases in SG&A expenses as a percentage of sales and gross profit resulted primarily from the operating leverage realized with higher sales, and lower amortization expenses, partially offset by increases in SG&A expenses to support sales volumes.

Russian-Ukraine Conflict Related Expenses

During fiscal 2022, the Company incurred $26.3 million of costs associated with the Russian-Ukraine conflict, primarily comprised of $17.2 million of expense for credit loss reserves for trade accounts receivable from Russian customers that are no longer considered collectible. The remaining expense is related to product write-downs for Russia based customers and other Russian business operation wind-down costs.

Restructuring, Integration and Other Expenses

During fiscal 2023, the Company incurred restructuring, integration and other expenses primarily related to the planned closure of a distribution center. In addition, the Company increased its estimated environmental remediation reserves associated with certain legacy manufacturing operations that were divested several decades ago. As a result, during fiscal 2023 the Company recorded restructuring, integration, and other expenses of $28.0 million. The Company recorded $17.4 million for restructuring costs consisting of $16.1 million for severance, $0.5 million for facility exit costs and $0.8 million for asset impairments. The Company expects to realize approximately $16.0 million in incremental annualized operating costs savings as a result of such restructuring actions once completed. Integration and other costs were $2.6 million associated with incremental costs incurred as a result of the planned distribution center closure and $8.0 million related to the Company’s estimated environmental remediation obligations, respectively. The after-tax impact of restructuring, integration and other expenses was $22.0 million and $0.24 per share on a diluted basis.

During fiscal 2022, the Company recorded restructuring, integration and other expenses of $5.3 million, substantially all of which was related to integration costs.

See Note 17, “Restructuring expenses” to the Company’s consolidated financial statements included in Item 8 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K for additional information related to restructuring expenses.

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Operating Income

Operating income for fiscal 2023 was $1.19 billion, an increase of $247.8 million or 26.4%, from fiscal 2022 operating income of $939.0 million. The year-over-year increase in operating income is primarily driven by the increase in sales and lower SG&A expenses, partially offset by a lower gross profit margin.

Operating income margin was 4.5% in fiscal 2023 compared to 3.9% in fiscal 2022. Adjusted operating income for fiscal 2023 was $1.22 billion, an increase of $235.3 million or 23.9%, from fiscal 2022. Adjusted operating income margin was 4.6% in fiscal 2023 compared to 4.1% in fiscal 2022. EC operating income margin was 4.8% in fiscal 2023 compared to 3.9% in fiscal 2022. Farnell operating income margin was 9.5% in fiscal 2023 compared to 13.4% in fiscal 2022.

Interest and Other Financing Expenses, Net

Interest and other financing expenses for fiscal 2023 was $250.9 million, an increase of $150.5 million, or 149.9%, compared with interest and other financing expenses of $100.4 million in fiscal 2022. The increase in interest and other financing expenses in fiscal 2023 compared to fiscal 2022 is a result of higher outstanding borrowings and increases in average borrowing rates during fiscal 2023 as compared to fiscal 2022.

Gain on Legal Settlements and Other

During fiscal 2023, the Company recorded a gain on legal settlements of $74.4 million before tax, $56.9 million after tax, and $0.61 per share on a diluted basis, in connection with the settlement of claims filed against certain manufacturers of capacitors. See Note 13, “Commitments and contingencies” to the Company’s consolidated financial statements included in Item 8 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K for additional information related to the gain on legal settlements.

In June 2023, the Company settled a portion of its pension liability related to certain retirees and terminated vested employees in the Company’s U.S. pension plan as part of a de-risking strategy. This strategy triggered settlement accounting which required immediate recognition of a portion of the accumulated losses associated with the plan. Consequently, the Company recognized non-cash settlement expense of $37.4 million in fiscal 2023.

Income Tax

The below discussion of the effective tax rate for the periods presented in the statements of operations is in comparison to the 21% U.S. statutory federal income tax rate.

Avnet’s effective tax rate on its income before income taxes was 21.6% in fiscal 2023. The effective tax rate for fiscal 2023 was unfavorably impacted primarily by (i) U.S. state taxes, (ii) increases to valuation allowances against deferred tax assets, and (iii) the mix of income in higher income tax jurisdictions, partially offset by (iv) the impact of foreign currency translation loss.

For fiscal 2022, the Company’s effective tax rate on its income before income taxes was 16.9%. The effective tax rate for fiscal 2022 was favorably impacted primarily by decreases to valuation allowances against deferred tax assets.

See Note 9, “Income taxes” to the Company’s consolidated financial statements included in Item 8 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K for further discussion on the effective tax rate.

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Net Income

As a result of the factors described in the preceding sections of this MD&A, the Company’s net income in fiscal 2023 was $770.8 million, or earnings per share on a diluted basis of $8.26, compared with fiscal 2022 net income of $692.4 million, or earnings per share on a diluted basis of $6.94.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

Cash Flows

Cash Flows from Operating Activities

The Company used $713.7 million of cash from its operating activities in fiscal 2023 as compared to $219.3 million of cash used in fiscal 2022. These operating cash flows are comprised of: (i) cash flows generated from net income, adjusted for the impact of non-cash and other items, which includes depreciation and amortization expense, deferred income taxes, stock-based compensation expense, amortization of operating lease assets and other non-cash items, and (ii) cash flows used for, or generated from, working capital and other, excluding cash and cash equivalents. Cash used for working capital and other to support sales growth was $1.68 billion during fiscal 2023, including increases in accounts receivable of $461.1 million and inventories of $1.17 billion, and a decrease in accounts payable of $75.9 million, offset by an increase in accrued expenses and other of $28.8 million. Comparatively, cash used for working capital and other was $1.09 billion during fiscal 2022, including increases in accounts receivable of $1.13 billion and inventories of $1.22 billion, offset by increases in accounts payable of $1.13 billion, and accrued expenses and other of $134.4 million.

Cash Flows from Financing Activities

During fiscal 2023, the Company received net proceeds of $498.6 million as a result of the issuance of $500.0 million of 6.25% Notes due March 2028, $728.2 million under the Credit Facility, and $258.0 million under the Securitization Program, and repaid $96.2 million under other short-term debt. During fiscal 2023, the Company paid dividends on common stock of $106.3 million, and repurchased $221.7 million of common stock.

During fiscal 2022, the Company received net proceeds of $300.0 million as a result of the issuance of $300.0 million of 5.50% Notes due May 2032, $274.9 million under the Securitization Program, and $235.0 million from borrowings of various bank credit facilities. During fiscal 2022, the Company repaid $354.3 million of notes, paid dividends on common stock of $98.5 million, and repurchased $184.4 million of common stock.

Cash Flows from Investing Activities

During fiscal 2023, the Company used $194.7 million for capital expenditures compared to $48.9 million in fiscal 2022. The increase in capital expenditures year over year was primarily related to expenditures for a new distribution center being built in EMEA to support the future growth of the EC EMEA business. During fiscal 2023, the Company used $16.9 million for other investing activities. During fiscal 2022, the Company received $90.4 million from investing activities related to the liquidation of Company owned life insurance policies.

Financing Transactions

The Company uses a variety of financing arrangements, both short-term and long-term, to fund its operations in addition to historical cash generated from operating activities. The Company also uses several funding sources to avoid becoming overly dependent on one financing source, and to lower overall funding costs. These financing arrangements

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include public debt (“Notes”), short-term and long-term bank loans, a revolving credit facility (the “Credit Facility”), and an accounts receivable securitization program (the “Securitization Program”).

The Company has various lines of credit, financing arrangements, and other forms of bank debt in the U.S. and various foreign locations to fund the short-term working capital, foreign exchange, overdraft, and letter of credit needs of its wholly owned subsidiaries. Outstanding borrowings under such forms of debt at the end of fiscal 2023 was $70.6 million.

As an alternative form of liquidity outside of the United States, the Company sells certain of its trade accounts receivable on a non-recourse basis to financial institutions pursuant to factoring agreements. The Company accounts for these transactions as sales of receivables and presents cash proceeds as cash provided by operating activities in the consolidated statements of cash flows. Factoring fees for the sales of trade accounts receivable are recorded within “Interest and other financing expenses, net” and were not material to the consolidated financial statements.

See Note 7, “Debt” to the Company’s consolidated financial statements included in Item 8 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K for additional information on financing transactions including the Credit Facility, the Securitization Program and the outstanding Notes as of July 1, 2023.

Covenants and Conditions

The Company’s Credit Facility contains certain covenants with various limitations on debt incurrence, share repurchases, dividends, investments and capital expenditures, and also includes financial covenant requiring the Company to maintain a leverage ratio below a certain threshold. The Company was in compliance with all such covenants as of July 1, 2023.

The Company’s Securitization Program contains certain covenants relating to the quality of the receivables sold. If these conditions are not met, the Company may not be able to borrow any additional funds and the financial institutions may consider this an amortization event, as defined in the Securitization Program agreements, which would permit the financial institutions to liquidate the accounts receivables sold to cover any outstanding borrowings. Circumstances that could affect the Company’s ability to meet the required covenants and conditions of the Securitization Program include the Company’s ongoing profitability and various other economic, market, and industry factors. The Company was in compliance with all such covenants as of July 1, 2023.

Management does not believe that the covenants under the Credit Facility or Securitization Program limit the Company’s ability to pursue its intended business strategy or its future financing needs.

See Liquidity below for further discussion of the Company’s availability under these various facilities.

Liquidity

The Company had cash and cash equivalents of $288.2 million as of July 1, 2023, of which $194.5 million was held outside the United States. As of July 2, 2022, the Company had cash and cash equivalents of $153.7 million, of which $60.4 million was held outside of the United States.

During periods of weakening demand in the electronic components industry, the Company typically generates cash from operating activities. Conversely, the Company will use cash for working capital requirements during periods of higher growth. The Company used $713.7 million in cash flows for operating activities during the fiscal year ended July 1, 2023, to support the fiscal 2023 sales growth.

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Liquidity is subject to many factors, such as normal business operations and general economic, financial, competitive, legislative, and regulatory factors that are beyond the Company’s control. To the extent the cash balances held in foreign locations cannot be remitted back to the U.S. in a tax efficient manner, those cash balances are generally used for ongoing working capital, including the need to purchase inventories, capital expenditures and other foreign business needs. In addition, local government regulations may restrict the Company’s ability to move funds among various locations under certain circumstances. Management does not believe such restrictions would limit the Company’s ability to pursue its intended business strategy.

As of July 1, 2023, there were $796.6 million of borrowings outstanding under the Credit Facility and $0.9 million in letters of credit issued, and $555.8 million outstanding under the Securitization Program. During fiscal 2023, the Company had an average daily balance outstanding under the Credit Facility of approximately $1.13 billion and $549.1 million under the Securitization Program. As of July 1, 2023, the combined availability under the Credit Facility and the Securitization Program was $846.7 million. Availability under the Securitization Program is subject to the Company having sufficient eligible trade accounts receivable in the United States to support desired borrowings.

The Company has the following contractual obligations outstanding as of July 1, 2023 (in millions):

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The Company purchases inventories in the normal course of business throughout the year through the issuance of purchase orders to suppliers. During fiscal 2023, the Company’s cost of sales, substantially all of which related to the underlying purchase of inventories was $23.4 billion and the Company had $5.5 billion of inventories as of July 1, 2023. The Company expects to continue to purchase sufficient inventory to meet its customers’ demands in fiscal year 2024, some of which relates to outstanding purchase orders at the end of fiscal 2023. Outstanding purchase orders with suppliers may be non-cancellable/non-returnable at the point such orders are issued, or may become non-cancellable at some point in the future, typically within 30 days to 90 days from the requested delivery date of inventories.

At July 1, 2023, the Company had an estimated liability for income tax contingencies of $130.5 million, which is not included in the above table. Cash payments associated with the settlement of these liabilities that are expected to be paid within the next 12 months is $1.0 million. The settlement period for the remaining amount of the unrecognized tax benefits, including related accrued interest and penalties, cannot be determined, and therefore was not included in the table.

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As of July 1, 2023, the Company may repurchase up to an aggregate of $318.5 million of shares of the Company’s common stock through the share repurchase program approved by the Board of Directors. The Company may repurchase stock from time to time at the discretion of management, subject to strategic considerations, market conditions including share price and other factors. The Company may terminate or limit the share repurchase program at any time without prior notice. During fiscal 2023, the Company repurchased $212.8 million of common stock.

The Company has historically paid quarterly cash dividends on shares of its common stock, and future dividends are subject to approval by the Board of Directors. During the fourth quarter of fiscal 2023, the Board of Directors approved a dividend of $0.29 per share, which resulted in $26.5 million of dividend payments during the quarter.

The Company continually monitors and reviews its liquidity position and funding needs. Management believes that the Company’s ability to generate operating cash flows through the liquidation of working capital in the future and available borrowing capacity, including capacity for the non-recourse sale of trade accounts receivable, will be sufficient to meet its future liquidity needs. Additionally, the Company believes that it has sufficient access to additional liquidity from the capital markets if necessary.

Critical Accounting Policies

The Company’s consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with GAAP. The preparation of these consolidated financial statements requires the Company to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, sales and expenses. These estimates and assumptions are based upon the Company’s continual evaluation of available information, including historical results and anticipated future events. Actual results may differ materially from these estimates.

The Securities and Exchange Commission defines critical accounting policies as those that are, in management’s view, most important to the portrayal of the Company’s financial condition and results of operations and that require significant judgments and estimates. Management believes the Company’s most critical accounting policies at the end of fiscal 2023 relate to:

Valuation of Inventories

Inventories are recorded at the lower of cost or estimated net realizable value. Inventory cost includes the purchase price of finished goods and any freight cost incurred to receive the inventory into the Company’s distribution centers. The Company’s inventories include electronic components sold into changing, cyclical, and competitive markets, so inventories may decline in market value or become obsolete.

The Company regularly evaluates inventories for expected customer demand, obsolescence, current market prices, and other factors that may render inventories less marketable. Write-downs are recorded so that inventories reflect the estimated net realizable value and take into account the Company’s contractual provisions with its suppliers, which may provide certain protections to the Company for product obsolescence and price erosion in the form of rights of return, stock rotation rights, obsolescence allowances, industry specific supplier rebate programs and price protections. Because of the large number of products and suppliers and the complexity of managing the process around price protections, supplier rebate programs and stock rotations, estimates are made regarding the net realizable value of inventories. Additionally, assumptions about future demand and market conditions, as well as decisions to discontinue certain product lines, impact the evaluation of whether to write-down inventories. If future demand changes or actual market conditions are less favorable than assumed, then management evaluates whether additional write-downs of inventories are required. In any case, actual net realizable values could be different from those currently estimated.

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Accounting for Income Taxes

Management’s judgment is required in determining income tax expense, unrecognized tax benefit liabilities , deferred tax assets and liabilities, and valuation allowances recorded against net deferred tax assets. Recovering net deferred tax assets depends on the Company’s ability to generate sufficient future taxable income in certain jurisdictions. In addition, when assessing the need for valuation allowances, the Company considers historic levels and types of income, expectations and risk associated with estimates of future taxable income, and ongoing prudent and feasible tax planning strategies. If the Company determines that it cannot realize all or part of its deferred tax assets in the future, it may record additional valuation allowances against the deferred tax assets with a corresponding increase to income tax expense in the period such determination is made. Similarly, if the Company determines that it can realize all or part of its deferred tax assets that have an associated valuation allowance established, the Company may release a valuation allowance with a corresponding benefit to income tax expense in the period such determination is made.

The Company establishes contingent liabilities for potentially unfavorable outcomes of positions taken on certain tax matters. These liabilities are based on management’s assessment of whether a tax benefit is more likely than not to be sustained upon examination by tax authorities. The anticipated and actual outcomes of these matters may differ, which may result in changes in estimates to such unrecognized tax benefit liabilities. To the extent such changes in estimates are necessary, the Company’s effective tax rate may fluctuate. In accordance with the Company’s accounting policy, accrued interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits are recorded as a component of income tax expense.

In determining the Company’s income tax expense, management considers current tax regulations in the numerous jurisdictions in which it operates, including the impact of tax law and regulation changes in the jurisdictions the Company operates in. The Company exercises judgment for interpretation and application of such current tax regulations. Changes to such tax regulations or disagreements with the Company’s interpretation or application by tax authorities in any of the Company’s major jurisdictions may have a significant impact on the Company’s income tax expense.

See Note 9, “Income taxes” to the Company’s consolidated financial statements included in Item 8 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K for further discussion on income tax expense, valuation allowances and unrecognized tax benefits.

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Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements

In September 2022, the FASB issued ASU No. 2022-04, Liabilities (subtopic 405-50): Supplier Finance Programs (“ASU No. 2022-04”) to enhance the transparency of certain supplier finance programs to allow financial statement users to understand the effect on working capital, liquidity and cash flows. The new pronouncement requires qualitative and quantitative disclosure sufficient to enable users of the financial statements to understand the nature, activity during the period, changes from period to period and potential magnitude of such programs. The Company plans to adopt this guidance in the first quarter of fiscal 2024, except for the amendment on roll-forward information, which is effective in fiscal 2025. The Company’s planned adoption of ASU No. 2022-04 is not expected to have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

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